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The Westernville New Year's Day shooting was a mass murder that occurred at a family gathering in Westernville, New York, United States on New Year's Day in 1969. Ralph MacLachlan (aged 35 or 37), a meat cutter and church elder, armed with a semi-automatic .22-caliber rifle, killed four people, including his wife, and injured five others. The next morning, MacLachlan committed suicide by shooting himself following an exchange of gunfire with police. Following the shooting, MacLachlan's brother stated that he had "no indication he was acting abnormally" during a phone conversation around an hour before the shooting. At the time, according to his brother, MacLauchlan was watching a New Year's Day bowl game on the television.

Victims

Four people were shot and killed, and a further five were injured. The fatalities include:

• Anita Turke MacLachlan, 33, the perpetrator's wife
• Jane Turke Ringrose, 35, the perpetrator's sister-in-law
• Barbara Jean Ringrose, 12, the perpetrator's niece
• Milton James Pepper, 14, the family's neighbor

Additionally, the shooter injured his father-in-law, mother-in-law, 10-year-old niece, brother-in-law, and another neighbor. MacLachlan and Anita's two-year-old and nine-month-old sons were unharmed after Anita hid them in a bedroom closet.

References

1. Pelkey, Herbert G. (3 January 1969). "Slayer of Four Kills Self In Shoot-Out with Police". Democrat and Chronicle. Archived from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
2. "Mass Slayer Kills Himself, Ending Rampage of Gunfire" (PDF). The Daily Iowan. 3 January 1969. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 November 2015. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
3. ^ Twellman, Chip (29 November 2020). "Horrific 1969 crime scene: Four murdered, five wounded in deadly domestic dispute". Daily Sentinel. Archived from the original on 30 June 2023. Retrieved 30 June 2023.
4. "Marital Problems: Motive For Killings?". Advance news. (Ogdensburg, N.Y.) 1967-current, January 05, 1969, Image 20. Advance News. 5 January 1969. p. 20. Archived from the original on 2023-06-30. Retrieved 2023-06-30.
5. "Gunman Kills Four Persons; Takes Own Life". da.tj.news. The Daily Gleaner. January 2, 1969. Archived from the original on June 30, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
6. "Man Kills Self After Slaying 4". The Tampa Tribune. 3 January 1969. p. 22. Archived from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
7. ^ Pelkey, Herbert G. (2 January 1969). "Gunman Kills 4 Persons, Wounds Eight Others in Adirondack Community". Ogdensburg Journal. Archived from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
8. "Future Of Two Orphaned Children Remains The Unanswered Question". Advance News. 5 January 1969. p. 8. Archived from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.

• 1969 in New York (state)
• 1969 mass shootings in the United States
• 1969 murders in the United States
• Attacks during New Year celebrations
• Deaths by firearm in New York (state)
• Mass murder in 1969
• Mass shootings in New York (state)
• January 1969 events in the United States
• Mass murder in New York (state)
• Familicides in the United States
• Mass murder in the United States in the 1960s
• 1960s crimes in New York (state)
• Murder–suicides in New York (state)
• Oneida County, New York